{"id":9004,"date":"2025-10-11T14:31:13","date_gmt":"2025-10-11T13:31:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/?p=9004"},"modified":"2025-10-11T14:31:13","modified_gmt":"2025-10-11T13:31:13","slug":"awls-bodkins","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/2025\/10\/11\/awls-bodkins\/","title":{"rendered":"Awls &#038; Bodkins"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Words for <strong>awl<\/strong>, <strong>bodkin<\/strong> and related things in Celtic languages.<\/p>\n<p><a data-flickr-embed=\"true\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/whitebeard\/5488682091\/in\/photolist-aBFegr-DAjTkc-95DrMo-28wdCFx-bGuAs8-23Wbj3w-2gPntEH-83bL9d-4RaZPF-9n1VXR-4Rf6V3-2mpmtf4-rBVvda-2jeHXRP-DWW5Ts-2iFTLSb-2kqv3fj-PHdfF-7Nf3Fa-2ohQQBP-2iFPEZD-5KGUm9-29uCzKm-2mpmqWX-2oC3pgx-HWxfNi-2oDgV6Z-2nzXpPR-2ojJFGo-2pwsEEN-2iMkhMY-2gPhvoc-8tvoiA-2oCoxCJ-5DB4rh-2gPhtom-2hnSJgn-2gPpM91-kJ5D2-2iShu68-2iFYWLq-6aNHKL-2hnSA8i-2iG3mPx-2iFQ2Sa-ApJKL-2mYNQgC-aSyB4r-6aJu1t-2oCa6mP\" title=\"Awls\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/5013\/5488682091_a15e309625_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"426\" alt=\"Awls\"\/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>An <strong>awl<\/strong> [\u0254\u02d0l\/\u0254l] is a pointed instrument for piercing small holes, as in leather or wood; used by shoemakers, saddlers, cabinetmakers, etc. The blade is differently shaped and pointed for different uses, as in the brad awl, saddler&#8217;s awl, shoemaker&#8217;s awl, etc. The word comes from Middle English <em>a(u)l<\/em> (awl), from Old English <em>\u00e6l<\/em> (awl, hook, fork), from Proto-West Germanic <em>*al<\/em> (awl), from Proto-Germanic <em>*alaz<\/em> (awl), from Proto-Indo-European <em>*h\u2081\u00f3los<\/em> (awl) [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/awl#English\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p><a data-flickr-embed=\"true\" href=\"https:\/\/www.flickr.com\/photos\/sos222\/12391789853\/in\/photolist-jT2apc-MXNxcQ-mPND7B-EUYnTL-4YLtKf-9q7fpX-qLwN4N-6XfHyS-fpZzVr-Hws9eA-2rr3sEW-FBR4oq-b5hWYi-God7PR-DcyveQ-2pfwPmS-3cKCJC-3cFcua-6fUTr9-3cKBGf-2rnbDLm-3cFdDz-2e796fR-2qCqEjT-vt5jzy-86x1iJ-6gQEuG-5zNdhG-7qHxwu-2gXroPQ-wcpqi1-Wr1vY-6d9W6S-k3Qpg-6fcQtP-2rn4EGC-rGgrg-2rnbDbo-2rn5DmH-2rnaZ9u-2rn5Di1-2rnaZ1d-2rnaYUb-2rnb3d6-2rn9ThQ-2rn9Th9-2rnb3af-2rn9Ted-7DJD4p-5UUfkC\" title=\"antique bodkins (&amp; tweezers)\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/live.staticflickr.com\/3792\/12391789853_e07ece506c_z.jpg\" width=\"640\" height=\"502\" alt=\"antique bodkins (&amp; tweezers)\"\/><\/a><script async src=\"\/\/embedr.flickr.com\/assets\/client-code.js\" charset=\"utf-8\"><\/script><\/p>\n<p>A <strong>bodkin<\/strong> [\u02c8b\u0252dk\u026an] is a small sharp pointed tool for making holes in cloth or leather. A blunt needle used for threading ribbon or cord through a hem or casing. A hairpin. A dagger, or a sharp tool, like an awl, formerly used for pressing down individual type characters (e.g. letters) from a column or page in making corrections. It comes from Middle English <em>boydekin<\/em> (dagger) and possibly has Celtic roots [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/bodkin#English\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Words marked with a * are reconstructions. <\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<th>Proto-Celtic<\/th>\n<td><strong>*minaweto-<\/strong> = awl<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Old Irish (Go\u00eddelc)<\/th>\n<td><strong>menad<\/strong> = awl<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Middle Irish (Gaoidhealg)<\/th>\n<td><strong>menad, menadh, menath, meanadh<\/strong> = awl, borer or pointed instrument used for drilling holes<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Irish (Gaeilge)<\/th>\n<td><strong>meana<\/strong> [\u02c8m\u02b2an\u032a\u02e0\u0259] = awl, bradawl, bodkin<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Scottish Gaelic (G\u00e0idhlig)<\/th>\n<td><strong>minidh, meanaidh<\/strong> [min\u026a] = shoemaker&#8217;s awl, small awl<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Manx (Gaelg)<\/th>\n<td><strong>mennee<\/strong> = awl, bradawl, pricker, stiletto<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Proto-Brythonic<\/th>\n<td><strong>*m\u0268nawed<\/strong> = awl (?)<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Middle Welsh (Kymraec)<\/th>\n<td><strong>mynawyd, minawed<\/strong> = awl, bradawl, bodkin<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Welsh (Cymraeg)<\/th>\n<td><strong>myn(i)awyd<\/strong> = awl, bradawl, bodkin (also written bin(i)ewid, binawad or byniawid)<br \/>\n<strong>bwyta uwd \u00e2 mynawyd<\/strong> = to attempt the impossible (&#8220;to eat porridge with an awl&#8221;)<br \/>\n<strong>mynawydu, mynawydo<\/strong> = to pierce with an awl<br \/>\n<strong>mynawydaidd<\/strong> = awl-shaped<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Middle Cornish (Cernewec)<\/th>\n<td><strong>benewes<\/strong> = awl<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Cornish (Kernewek)<\/th>\n<td><strong>menowes<\/strong> = awl<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Middle Breton (Brezonec)<\/th>\n<td><strong>menauet<\/strong> = awl, bodkin, punch<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Breton (Brezhoneg)<\/th>\n<td><strong>minaoued<\/strong> = awl, bodkin, punch<br \/>\n<strong>minaoueder<\/strong> = maker of awls, bodkins or punches<br \/>\n<strong>minaouedi\u00f1<\/strong> = to punch<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><strong>Etymology<\/strong>: unknown; possibly a substrate word [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic\/minaweto-\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<table>\n<tbody>\n<tr>\n<th>Proto-Celtic<\/th>\n<td><strong>*brazdos<\/strong> = thorn<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Old Irish (Go\u00eddelc)<\/th>\n<td><strong>brot<\/strong> = goad<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Middle Irish (Gaoidhealg)<\/th>\n<td><strong>brot, brud, brod<\/strong> = <goad, spike\n<strong>brotad<\/strong> = act of goading, urging<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Irish (Gaeilge)<\/th>\n<td><strong>brod<\/strong> [b\u02e0\u027e\u02e0od\u032a\u02e0] = goad<br \/>\n<strong>broideadh<\/strong> = to prod, nudge, bite<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Scottish Gaelic (G\u00e0idhlig)<\/th>\n<td><strong>brog<\/strong> [brog] = awl<br \/>\n<strong>brogan<\/strong> [brogan] = small awl, probe, poker<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<tr>\n<th>Manx (Gaelg)<\/th>\n<td><strong>brod<\/strong> = goad, jab, nudge, prick, spur, stimulus, poker<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\n<p><strong>Etymology<\/strong>: from Proto-Indo-European <em>*b\u02b0resd\u02b0-<\/em>, from <em>*b\u02b0ers-<\/em> (top, tip, point). Words from the same roots include <strong>barley<\/strong>, <strong>bristle<\/strong> and <strong>brush<\/strong> in English, <strong>barr<\/strong> (pine needles) in Icelandic, <strong>bara<\/strong> (bread) in Welsh, Cornish and Breton, <strong>farina<\/strong> (flour, meal) in Italian, and <strong>harina<\/strong> (flour) in Spanish [<a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/wiki\/brot#Old_Irish\">source<\/a>].<\/p>\n<p>Another word for <strong>bodkin<\/strong> in Manx is <strong>burkan<\/strong>. Not sure where it comes from. A <strong>bodkin<\/strong> in Welsh is also a <strong>bwytgyn<\/strong> or <strong>botgyn<\/strong>, which come from Middle English <em>boytekyn \/ boydekin <\/em> (dagger, bodkin).<\/p>\n<p>Sources: <em><a href=\"https:\/\/en.wiktionary.org\/\">Wiktionary<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/embed\/EtymologicalDictionaryOfProtoCeltic\">Etymological Dictionary Of Proto Celtic<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www3.smo.uhi.ac.uk\/sengoidelc\/duil-belrai\/english.html\">In D\u00fail B\u00e9lrai English &#8211; Old Irish glossary<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/dil.ie\/\">eDIL &#8211; Electronic Dictionary of the Irish Language<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/www.teanglann.ie\/en\/fgb\/ceann\">Teanglann.ie<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.faclair.com\/\">Am Faclair Beag<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/en.wikisource.org\/wiki\/An_Etymological_Dictionary_of_the_Gaelic_Language\">An etymological dictionary of the Gaelic language<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/dictionaryq.com\/gaelg\/\">Fockleyreen: Manx &#8211; English Dictionary<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.mannin.info\/Mannin\/fockleyr\/m2e.php\">Online Manx Dictionary<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/corpus.gaelg.im\/\">Gaelg Corpus<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/geiriadur.ac.uk\/gpc\/gpc.html\">Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/archive.org\/details\/lexiconcornubrit00willuoft\/page\/n5\/mode\/2up\">Lexicon cornu-britannicum : a dictionary of the ancient Celtic language of Cornwall<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.cornishdictionary.org.uk\/\">Gerlyver Kernewek<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/devri.bzh\/\">Devri : Le dictionaire diachronique du breton<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/geriafurch.bzh\/fr\">Geriafurch<\/a>, <a href=\"http:\/\/www.brezhoneg.bzh\/87-termofis.htm\">TermOfis<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Words for awl, bodkin and related things in Celtic languages. An awl [\u0254\u02d0l\/\u0254l] is a pointed instrument for piercing small holes, as in leather or wood; used by shoemakers, saddlers, cabinetmakers, etc. The blade is differently shaped and pointed for different uses, as in the brad awl, saddler&#8217;s awl, shoemaker&#8217;s awl, etc. The word comes [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[15,16,26,19,20,65,21,83,3,22,5,6,77,37,7,27,71,10,11,12,67,13,205,23,82,135,43,18,14],"tags":[299,300,301,52,80,51,145,48,47,53,49,55,50],"class_list":["post-9004","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-adjectives","category-breton","category-kernewek-cornish","category-english","category-etymology","category-icelandic-islenska","category-gaeilge-irish","category-italian-italiano","category-language","category-gaelg-manx","category-middle-breton","category-middle-cornish","category-middle-english-englisch","category-middle-irish","category-middle-welsh-kymraec","category-nouns","category-old-english-aenglisc","category-old-irish-goidelc","category-proto-brythonic","category-proto-celtic","category-proto-germanic","category-proto-indo-european","category-proto-west-germanic","category-gaidhlig-scottish-gaelic","category-spanish-espanol","category-tools","category-verbs","category-cymraeg-welsh","category-words","tag-awl","tag-bodkin","tag-bradawl","tag-breton","tag-celtic","tag-cornish","tag-etymology","tag-gaelic","tag-irish","tag-language","tag-manx","tag-scottish-gaelic","tag-welsh"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9004","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=9004"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9004\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":9005,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/9004\/revisions\/9005"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=9004"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=9004"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.omniglot.com\/celtiadur\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=9004"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}